The issue with scores over 3 cd's is that they will inevitably be somewhat repetitious. So as many here are doing, you create your own playlist... Now I don't know how long it takes any one of you to sort through all the tracks, compare the various alternates, make a pre-selection, a final one and then also possibly have to decide in which order to re-arrange the tracks... but to me this is a lot of WORK!

It's only work if you either don't like doing it or you're getting paid. Otherwise, it's recreation. Going through a score you love to make a shorter, stronger (to your taste) listening experience is a labor of love. So, no, it's not work at all. It's FUN!

And if time is money

It's not. Unless you're getting paid to do this. It's called "leisure time." Instead of bowling or playing Foos Ball, I'm making a playlist.

So unless one is retired with all the time in the world, "managing" 3 cd sets for the active professional is just a burden more than anything else, regardless of how great the music is.

Not to me and I will never retire. I work 5 days a week, hit the gym afterward, spend time with my granddaughter and fit in acting and video projects. And I still make some time to fart around with music. I make it a point to always have time for the pleasurable things in life.

So, either you work too much or this sort of thing doesn't interest you enough to make the time for it. I'd guess the latter. Which is cool, we can't all be home records producers.

It's only work if you either don't like doing it or you're getting paid. Otherwise, it's recreation. Going through a score you love to make a shorter, stronger (to your taste) listening experience is a labor of love. So, no, it's not work at all. It's FUN!

Totally agree! I consider it a hobby and one I enjoy doing more than any other. If only someone paid me to do this I would be even happier.

3 discs are great. it somewhat depends on the score, but i for one love alternates so please bring it on! Before there ever was an espansion i used to dream of them! And thankfully a lot have been released. Sometimes it seems a bit much but more often then not its because of the C&C format. When the expansons started appearing I thought that the album would be made with every note but not C&C I was expecting more like sometihing of a, lets say, third Star Wars LP to enhance the double LP. More or less like Hook but then with all the material presented. As far as expansions go Hook is the way to go for me. It still flows like a symphonie and to me it feels like half an hour instead of more then 2. That would be my preference. But most important of all is being able to listen to the music! More of the music I love is more to be happy with and more time spend enjoying it!

- I'm not a big fan of expansions, and I (more often than not) don't need the complete score.

Isn't it nice that 3-Disc sets like TMP give you the choice in that very matter? Don't want the compete score experience, how about the original album presentation? Want to hear select versions of the 1999 album as well? It's got that too. Or how about something that's not even in the movie? It is nice to have options.

I hardly ever have the time to sit through the whole three disc version of a album. My favorite of the three disc sets I own is the Conan. I loved how they set it up. Original album plus the complete score. I am still debating if it's worth paying for the five disc version of Ben Hur?

I would like to hear from the people here that own The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo 3CD set. I saw the movie and thought the music was not good and then the composer releases a 3 CD set? I would not buy 1 CD of this score. Was that release too long. I thought it would be good, because I like what I heard in The Social Network.

What happened was Reznor pulled an Inception and just made a ton of music inspired from the script, storyboards and talks with the director... and then Fincher took the music he liked and put it in the film. The 3 discs are essentially the recording sessions and the way I look at it, Nine Inch Nails "Ghosts I-IV: 2" (speaking of which, several tracks from The Social Network were retooled versions of pieces from "Ghosts I-IV")

There's a 5-disc bootleg of INCEPTION out there.

Yeah, no thanks.

Okay, I like Inception... but i'm strained to find how they could get a score for a movie 2 1/2 hour long movie to 5 discs. I could see 3 at the most for alternates and remixes. but seriously? How is that even possible?

...and yet I would buy it in a heartbeat if it got an official release. Go figure!

I usually take the lazy way out editing down an over-long release and cut out all the alternates and junk at the end when converting to mp3 for portable listening. Thankfully the source cues are rarely in the middle to need to be cut out then as well. Beyond that, I don't really mind a huge 3 disc release as long as I don't have to pay 3x the price.

I would like to hear from the people here that own The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo 3CD set. I saw the movie and thought the music was not good and then the composer releases a 3 CD set? I would not buy 1 CD of this score. Was that release too long. I thought it would be good, because I like what I heard in The Social Network.

What happened was Reznor pulled an Inception and just made a ton of music inspired from the script, storyboards and talks with the director... and then Fincher took the music he liked and put it in the film. The 3 discs are essentially the recording sessions and the way I look at it, Nine Inch Nails "Ghosts I-IV: 2" (speaking of which, several tracks from The Social Network were retooled versions of pieces from "Ghosts I-IV")

There's a 5-disc bootleg of INCEPTION out there.

Yeah, no thanks.

Okay, I like Inception... but i'm strained to find how they could get a score for a movie 2 1/2 hour long movie to 5 discs. I could see 3 at the most for alternates and remixes. but seriously? How is that even possible?

...and yet I would buy it in a heartbeat if it got an official release. Go figure!

Lol. That 5 CDs edit is fake. The real bootleg is 2 CDs and the only extra stuff is some suites (already included on the CD) and a couple of inserts.

I hardly ever have the time to sit through the whole three disc version of a album. My favorite of the three disc sets I own is the Conan. I loved how they set it up. Original album plus the complete score. I am still debating if it's worth paying for the five disc version of Ben Hur?

Ben Hur is worth every penny.

Yes, but obviously that is a scholarly archival set easily as much as a listening set. It is not designed to be listened to from disc one through disc 6, but rather features possible "programs" to listen to. And it is wonderful to be able to dig through this much material of many different scores. Howard Shore's LORD OF THE RINGS certainly holds up well on altogether 10 CDs, as it plays like a Wagner opera and there is little actual repetition.

I don’t have too many 3 CD sets, but ‘The Alamo’ on Prometheus is one that springs to mind. It’s one of my favourite scores, a great performance by The COP and a welcome release but I can’t help but feel the 3CDs is overkill. I could have done without the alternate versions on Disc 3, and would have preferred the score being crammed on 2 discs.